Concentrating on contact, not power, Guardians an anomaly

By RONALD BLUM
AP Baseball Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Cleveland’s 1,122 strikeouts were the fewest by far in the major leagues and its .254 batting average was sixth best, 10 points above the big league average. The major leagues’ youngest team was just 29th among the 30 clubs in homers — 127 to the Yankees’ big league-best 254. Even with a two-game opening-round sweep of Tampa Bay, the Guardians have scored four runs and struck out 35 times in the playoffs. They try to overcome a 1-0 deficit against the New York Yankees when their best-of-five AL Division Series resumes Thursday night — weather permitting.